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Replies to: Deciding between Economics and Accounting for Bachelor's degree.

I'm still unclear on majors like Economics. You major in accounting and get a job at an accounting firm. Do they have economics firms? Do corporations have economics departments? I know you can get a job, but my point is it isn't as clear cut for a grad seeking employment is it?

There are economics departments and there are titles such as economist, and chief economist. Most economists have PhD's in economics, a few have masters. You find the in government, banks and investment firms, and research firms that are investment advisers, and publication firms that are investment advisers.

For example: The national association of realtors has an economics departmenty. The Chief economist give out quarterly reports on the state of the economy and how it effects the real estate industry. He reports on what has happened, where we are, and what this may mean for the future. This data is used by local firms for local economic analysis done by local economists. the local economists change the language into something that Realtors, the press, attorneys, Real Estate Managers, REITS, and everyday people can understand.

If you want to go into business and undergraduate degree in economics is not good enough. Accounting is better. Much better. Economics is Theory, philosophy, and mathematical analysis and prediction, and policy. It's academia. There is very little practical training for economists other than how to conduct research and experiments. Economics also covers a broad range of subjects beyond business.

Economists do become financial analysts but they all have masters and PhD's.

Undergrad economists tend to go to law school or MBA. If you work as an economist from undergrad you will work in data collection and data entry. Undergrad business students (and Economic PhD's) are better prepared to interpret the data. The business students know how to apply it to practical matters. For example: How does the consumer price index (a measure of inflation) effect rental rates in Austin Texas? What should you do as a REIT property manager (Probably an MBA with finance or real estate specialty) or a small company property manager (A Realtor with an accounting degree maybe?).

Most graduate economists come out of mathematics, physics, and finance disciplines.

You can not really be a solo economist like you can be a solo accountant or financial adviser. You need credibility and that comes from academia.

Unless the economics department is apart of the b-school. Usually it's not. Economics is considered a science and a humanities subject. You find it in Liberal Arts or Science departments. If it's in the b-school, you should be required to take some core business classes as well, and then my description will not apply to you.

Well, like I said before, I am going to get my Master's in Accounting, but I was wondering if it is better to get my Bachelor's in Accounting or Economics. Is it better to have that variety of Bachelor's in Economics and Master's in Accounting or to just go with accounting for both?

Also, I'm going to UF so I would be earning my Economics degree from the Warrington College of Business Administration, not the humanities department.

Take a couple classes of each subject and find out which one you like more. They are very different subjects.

I am majoirng in finance and accounting right now (and am seriously considering upgrading my econ minor to a major). I enjoy economics much more, but as people have already said, it is much more theory whereas accounting is more practical.

If you are deadset on getting a masters in accounting, you should probably major in accounting to have a better understanding of it.

Economics departments are ranked differently than business schools. It about the professors - what and how much they publish; and from what school of thought they teach.

Accounting is more versatile for business no matter what school. To get anywhere as an economist you need to get a PhD or go to Law School which is what most undergrad economists do. MA & PhD economists mostly come from math and physics programs, not undergrad economics.

Anyone at harvard, yale, Princeton, MIT, Stanford, northwestern, duke or any other elite school who wants to go into business, especially IB or management consulting, would major in economics. It is foolish to assume that if you major in economics the only job you can get is as an economist.

I think the big thing here is that if you want to be an accountant, you will likely want to be a CPA, and to do so you need to take accounting classes and have 150 hours. The best way to do this is to do an integrated bachelor/master degree program where you go through it in five years. Getting an economics degree first costs more because you have to pay for more grad school and it delays the time until you can start earning good money.

Tortfeasor, you are assuming that an economics major will ONLY lead to becoming an economist. I am guessing a history major will only lead to a historian and an english major.. and english teacher? What about the art history major in harvard? What does he become?

Tell that to a Brown university English major who is probably your boss right now.

It doesn't matter what you major in but because accounting is a technical, specialized field, I would say it is necessary to major in it if you are deadset on getting the CPA. However if you plan to major in accounting just because you feel unsafe entering the business industry, let me assure you that an economic major will take you just as far, if not, even further than an accounting major.

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